In love with a giant
by WiseDragonGirl
Summary: Somewhere after the Holy Knights and the Seven Deadly Sins worked together to free Liones from the evil that had it in it's grasp (aka, somewhere after the final episode of the first season of the anime), Howzer thinks back to the first time he met Diane. When he meets her in the city he asks her out on a date. Could this be the start of something good?
1. Mending a broken heart

_Authors note:_

 _First off, the name. I'm calling the Holy Knight Howzer in my fanfic, but I've seen both Howzer and Hauser as translations for his name, so I'm not sure which one of these is correct.  
I've seen Howzer being used in the subs of the anime on Netflix, but Hauser in the subs of the anime on an anime streaming site.  
I've seen Howzer being used on the Wikia page of this anime, but Hauser in the wikipedia character list of this anime.  
_ _If anyone knows what his official name is, please let me know because I'm confused XD_

 _Secondly, in all fairness, King probably deserves most to end up with Diane, it's obvious he loves her deeply and has done so for a long time, but I still favour the Howzer x Diane pairing._ _Also, Diane is in love with Meliodas, to make it more complex, so canon-wise I don't see Howzer having any chance, but hey, this is a fanfiction site, right? ^_^_

 _If you like this pairing, I hope you'll enjoy this fanfiction!_

* * *

The sound of metal hitting stone filled the street as the Holy Knight Howzer walked through the city of Liones in full armour, his lance balanced loosely on his shoulder. His duties for the day were over and he longed to have a beer with friends in one of the pubs of city he lived and worked in, the beautiful capital city of Liones. After going through some of the options in his head he settled for the Boar Hat, the pub owned by Meliodas, the leader of the Seven Deadly Sins.

Howzer reached his home and entered it. He removed the steel armour and washed up before he put a green sleeveless tunic on, followed by a short, yellow and also sleeveless vest. His clothing brought out his muscular chest arms, it was a look he quite enjoyed when he was free to wear civilian clothing. He looked at himself through a mirror and smiled a bit, this was exactly what he wore during the Vaizel fight festival. It was there where he met the Serpent Sin of Envy Diane for the first time. The smile turned to a grin when he recalled the fight, he had lost that one, but it had been an amazing one too. She had shown her true strength and when he was defeated all he had been able to feel was respect for her strength and honour to be taken seriously by one of the seven Deadly Sins. The grin returned to a smile again. That moment when she winked and poked her tongue at him as she left the arena, that was when the world had stopped for a moment and his heart had skipped a beat. That was one moment he would never forget. He continued to put on his purple pants as he thought about the events after that. Like the arrival of other Holy Knights at the festival and how Diane had saved a man when she was being attacked. Or the fight within Liones where he stood up for her against his comrades after she went through amazing lengths to protect innocent people while being targeted herself. He still couldn't get over the fact she would defend others so selflessly. He combed his blond hair and checked the result in the mirror. Diane was kind and cute and there wasn't anything about her he didn't like. The fact that she was a giant didn't change anything about that. There was just one problem: he had no idea on how to approach her about that.

After a final glance at the mirror and an approving nod from himself, Howzer left his home and entered the streets of the city once more. He had invited his friend and fellow Holy Knight Gilthunder to come along, but as expected he had refused. That didn't matter, he was in the mood for some beers and laughter and he didn't need Gil going with him to get that. There were plenty of other men at the various pubs and he was certain he'd have a great evening. He casually walked through the city towards the place where Meliodas had planted his inn, the beer there was very good after all, but he stopped as he neared the building. There, just outside the pub, he saw the giant girl with her orange clothes and brown twin tails he had been thinking about earlier. He noticed how she had her legs pulled up, fiddled with her hair and she stared at the road with a sad look in her beautiful purple eyes.

"Hey," he said as he walked up to her. He put a hand on her leg as he looked up. "Is everything okay?"

Diane glanced down towards him and played with one of her twin tails. She pulled the hair in front of her face as she looked at the ground. "Captain only has attention for Elizabeth," she sighed. "I'm sure he doesn't love me."

"Who wouldn't be able to love you?" Howzer muttered.

"Hm?" Diane looked at Howzer. "What did you say?"

"Nothing," Howzer quickly said, making a dismissive motion with his hand. He looked up to her with a kind smile. "But I want to cheer you up. Let's go on a date."

"A date?" she repeated.

"Exactly. We'll go to a tavern in town, I'll buy some beer and we can reflect on how much I didn't stand a chance against you in the Vaizel fight festival."

Diane giggled, nodded and rose up to her feet. She towered high over Howzer and she followed him as he lead her away from the Boar Hat, towards a tavern called 'Golden Rain'. Some empty crates were stacked next to the tavern and as Howzer asked her to wait outside, she nodded and sat down next to them, waiting for him to return.

It didn't take long before Howzer emerged from the tavern again, with one hand tugged in the pocket of his pants and in the other he held a mug of beer. Close behind him was a maid of the tavern who rolled in a keg. "Cheers!" Howzer said as he gestured to the keg.

"Thank you," Diane said as she took the keg from the ground. In her hand it seemed the size of a regular mug.

Howzer walked over to the crates and climbed up, so he could sit a little closer to Diane. Together they drank ale, talked and laughed. Diane expressed her gratitude towards Howzer to stand up for her against his friends, to which he said it was the only right thing to do in that situation and he apologized for attacking her before, to which she replied it was okay, everything turned out well after all. Following the order to attack her with his fellow Holy Knight Gilthunder was something he had felt bad about, seeing her being attacked by the Great Holy Knight Dreyfus had been heartbreaking. And when she put her body on the line to protect a child, that was when he decided he had to stand up for her, even though it could cost him his position as Holy Knight or even his life. Luckily everything had turned out for the best and now they could sit together, enjoy a beer and talk like friends.

All in all, the evening turned out quite pleasant and Howzer enjoyed the time he could spend with the Giant girl. Every time he looked at her and saw her happy smile, he felt happy too. This casual evening, this moment in which neither of them had to fight, felt amazing and he wanted nothing more than to let it stay this way forever, but that was impossible. As the evening came to an end they said their goodbye's and each went their own way, but not before Diane thanked him for the wonderful evening. A remark that kept him smiling all the way back to his house.

Even though it wasn't planned, they met up again the next day. He was still in full armour when their paths crossed and they strolled through the city for a while before finding a high place to sit and look out over the city and the castle. Just like the other day they talked and shared some laughs. And all that time Howzer really wanted to say how he felt, but he didn't. He still wasn't sure on how to bring it. It wasn't like he had been all to successful with women in the past after all. He did ask if Diane was up for a stroll outside the city walls the next day and she agreed to it, as she had nothing special planned for her day.

The next day they found themselves in a meadow, red and yellow flowers adorned the green carpet of grass and they walked up to a tall oak tree. As Diane set down and rested her head against the trunk, Howzer climbed up in the tree to sit on a low branch. Just like before he was dressed in the sleeveless tunic and shirt.

"It's so beautiful here," Diane sighed.

"Yeah," Howzer agreed, even though he looked at Diane rather than the flowers. A silence fell between them and Howzer took in a deep breath. "Hey Diane."

"Yes?"

"I, uhm..." _Why is this so hard?_ "Well, you see..." _I've stood against strong opponents, defeated an army of northern barbarians!_ "The point is..." _I've never felt this nervous in my life!_ As Howzer tried to say the words he wanted to say Diane listened to him with a curious look in her eyes. "I, I love you," Howzer finally said as he looked at the ground. After a moment of silence he looked up at Diane and saw the cutest, heart-melting smile.

"Thank you," Diane said.

Howzer stared at Diane for a moment, but then showed a gentle smile. _So no 'I love you too' right? Well, at least she didn't laugh or leave..._ "Yeah, well," he said as he faced forward and looked at the scenery around them. "I thought I should let you know."

Again Diane showed the cutest smile and they continued to sit there, just enjoying the moment and each other's company.


	2. The giant hunters

A few days passed since Howzer had confessed his feelings for Diane when he walked with Gilthunder through the castle. Both were in full armour and had their weapon hanging at their left side. One of the apprentice Holy Knights walked up to them and looked at Howzer.

"Sir, the giant girl asked me to invite you for a lunch with her, she will prepare a picnic near an oak tree. She said you would know where to find her."

Howzer nodded with a smile. "Yeah, I know where she is." He started walking away as he raised his hand as greeting. "Later Gil," he said with a wink, "it seems I have a lunch-date."

"I'll see you afterwards then," Gilthunder said and he watched his friend leave, before turning and going in the other direction.

A cart stood next to the oak tree where Diane and Howzer had spend some time a few days ago. A giant warhammer leaned against the tree, she always took her Gideon with her. After losing it once she kept it close to her at all times. She looked at the cart with a happy smile, there was enough food in there to satisfy a giant and since humans didn't eat as much as giants did, Diane was certain she had enough with her. As she looked at the cart with her hands behind her back a piercing pain hit her thigh. She grunted and looked down to see a spear stuck in her leg. She grabbed the handle and pulled the spear out as she looked around to see where the culprits were. She soon noticed a group of five humans, three of them holding a spear similar as the one she held in her hand.

"What's the meaning of this?" she informed with an angry tone in her voice. "Attacking a girl like me like that."

"Silent, giant!" one of the men exclaimed. The blond man was the only one dressed in an armour, the others wore hunting clothes. "We will take your head as a prize!"

Diane glared at him and reached for her Gideon, for some reason some humans felt killing a giant and taking their head was something to be proud of. They used it to prove their strength and skills, but she wouldn't allow them to kill her. As she grabbed her Gideon she tried to lift it, but her arm trembled and she couldn't pick it up. She looked surprised at her weapon when he legs started to tremble and she fell to the ground. "W-what?" she muttered as she tried to lift her arm, but she discovered she couldn't.

"Poison," the blond man explained. "There was enough poison on that spear to kill a grown man almost instantly. And enough to paralyze a giant." He smirked as he walked up to her, pulling a large two-handed sword out of the sheath on his back. "You will die here, giant."

Diane tried to lift her arm or her leg or move anything that would allow her to either defend herself or get away, but she couldn't. "My friends," she whispered as tears started to form, "where are you? I, I don't want to die alone."

She watched how the armoured man rose his sword in the sky when a vertical disc of wind appeared in front of her to block the incoming attack. She blinked as she looked at it, she had seen such an attack once before, but at that time it had been aimed at her. "Howzer," she whispered.

Howzer walked up and positioned himself between Diane and the five men. He aimed his furious glare at the blond man. "Leave the girl alone," he ordered him.

"She's a giant."

"She's my friend and a hero!" Howzer exclaimed. "If you want her, you'll have to go through me, Jules!"

"Jules?" Diane whispered with some effort. "Do you know him?"

"A former Holy Knight," Howzer explained without looking at her. "He got discharged for dishonourable behaviour." He narrowed his eyes. "I won't let you do this."

"Try and stop me!"

In response to that Howzer sent his Whirl Shock to Jules, who used his sword to save himself from the attack. Jules then raised his hand and the three men who still had their spears raised their weapons.

"B-be careful," Diane muttered with some effort. "Those..."

"I know," Howzer said as he put his feet firmly on the ground and moved his lance behind him. "Poison, one spear is enough to kill me." As the men moved their throwing arms back, Howzer lifted the tip of his lance in the sky. "Rising Tornado!" he exclaimed, creating a tornado at the place those men with their spears stood. They all lifted into the sky, just like the spears they held and the rocks on the ground around them. He noticed Jules charging towards him with the two-handed sword high in the sky and he quickly brought his lance down to catch the blow with it. Because of this the tornado dissolved and the hunters all fell down on the ground, where they remained motionless.

Howzer and Jules glared at each other above their crossed blades, the muscles in their arms tense from the force they both generated.

"Siding with giants," Jules growled in disgust.

"There's nothing wrong with that," Howzer stated coldly. "At least I didn't turn against my fellow knights and got some of them killed for gold."

"Those knights were weaklings!" Jules put one hand on Howzer's chest. "Electric Pulse!" Just like Gilthunder, Jules had electric attacks, but he was only a crystal rank, the lowest rank a Holy Knight could have. Howzer himself had a platinum rank, the second highest rank. One of the knights who had the highest rank was Gilthunder, who had a diamond rank. The only ones higher than that were the Great Holy Knights, the leaders of the order.

Despite being higher ranked, the Electric Pulse shot painfully through his body and Howzer sank to one knee as he held his hand against his chest. "Damn you," he growled as he tried to catch his breath and he quickly rolled to the side to avoid the blade carving into him. He heard Diane call his name worriedly and a quick glance in her direction learned him she tried to get up to help, but was still unable to. He pulled his head to the side when the tip of the two-handed sword came towards it and he rolled onto his knees. He barely had the time to move his head out of the way of the blade again, but it hit his shoulder, sliced through the armour and into his flesh. He groaned through his clenched teeth, but formed a tornado around his arm and punched towards Jules, sending his Rising Tornado to him. This gave him time to got back up on his feet and he aimed the tip of his lance at Jules, the muscles in his arms were still sore from the electricity travelling through it and his shoulder hurt, but it was nothing he couldn't deal with. He formed a tornado around the lance and thrust it forward. Jules brought his blade up from below in an attempt to hit the lance and push it out of the way, but he couldn't create enough speed to succeed with that and the tip of the in wind covered lance pierced his armour. The eyes of Jules got larger as he felt the tip pierce into his flesh, but almost immediately after he narrowed his eyes and glared at Howzer. It was painful, but not a mortal wound. The two knights looked at each other. "This would be a good moment to drop your weapon, surrender and allow me to bring you back to the castle for your trial," Howzer suggested.

"How about I kill you instead?" Jules spat as he grabbed a dagger and charged it with electricity.

Just before he could push the dagger in Howzer's neck, Howzer grabbed the lance tighter. "Whirl Shock!" he called out and Jules screamed when the wind on the tip of the lance formed into a revolving disc, rupturing his organs and flesh from the inside. As Howzer pulled back his lance he watched Jules' body fall to the ground. "You got better, I have to admit that," he sighed as he looked at his shoulder. The armour had absorbed most of the energy of the blow, the blade had gone through the armour, but the wound it inflicted wasn't deep. With the lance in his hand he walked over to Diane and looked at her. "Are you okay?"

"Me? How about you? I thought you were going to die."

Howzer smiled gently at her. "Hey, give me some credit. I've been in tougher fights than this."

"Are they dead?"

Howzer looked back at the hunters and walked over to them. He crouched down next to them and examined them, after which he got back up and nodded to Diane. "Yeah, if the fall from the sky didn't kill them, it were either the stones in the tornado or a scratch from the spears as they tumbled in the wind." The attack itself usually wasn't enough to kill a well-trained Holy Knight or a demon, definitely not enough to kill a giant as Diane had proven in the past, but against normal humans the attack was usually fatal. He walked back to Diane and put a hand on her leg. "How are you feeling?"

"I can move my arms a little, the poison is slowly wearing off."

"I'm glad to hear that," Howzer sighed in relief. He looked back at the bodies. "And I'm glad I got here in time."

"Me too," Diane said as she smiled at him. "This is the second time you defended me. Thank you."

"What else can a knight do than come to the aid of a damsel in distress?" he asked with a playful wink and Diane giggled.

"A really big damsel," she added with a happy smile, but the smile soon faded. "You'd think a big girl like me can take care of herself."

"You're the strongest girl I met in my life," Howzer said with a bit of a frown. "You were attacked from behind and brought down with poison. That has nothing to do with how strong you are. You survived Gil's and mine combined Dragon Castle attack and you were still able to walk after all the damage you took from Dreyfus right after that." He noticed how she looked at him with a grateful look in her beautiful purple eyes. "No-one, including yourself, has the right to question your strength," he continued with a tender smile, "because I saw what you are capable of. I didn't stand a chance against you when you were just human sized, I couldn't dream of defeating you in your full size. The fact these cowards had to turn to poison says enough."

Diane nodded and looked at Howzer, she recalled he had reproached her once for always thinking about others and not about her own safety, but this was the second time he fought for her sake. She noticed how he looked at the body of Jules. "Were you close with him?"

"Used to," he replied and he sat down with a sigh. "I considered him a friend when he was still part of the Holy Knights, but that friendship died when he was responsible for the death of other Holy Knights, I considered one of the victims a friend too." He shook his head. "But trying to kill you is unforgivable."

A silence fell between them and she slowly rose her hand to her one of her sideway tails and fiddled with it. Her limbs were still stiff, but at least she could move them again. She looked at Howzer and then reached out, gently picked him up and held him against her chest as she touched the top of his head with her cheek. "I love you, Howzer," she whispered as she cuddled with him.

Howzer blinked when he heard those words, but smiled soon after and looked up at her when she lowered him slightly. "You can't believe how happy those words make me."

"Can you love a big girl like me?"

The smile turned into a grin. "I already told you I did. And I have done so ever since the Vaizal Fight Festival." Truthfully, at first he hadn't wanted to admit that to himself, but when he was able to be honest with himself about that, he concluded it had fallen in love with her back then. He saw the happy look in her eyes and that gave him a warm feeling inside. He glanced down to the cart filled with food. "I don't know if you're still in the mood for the picnic you offered, but I'm hungry."

Diane nodded to show her approval and gently lowered him to the ground. Maybe it hadn't gone completely as she had envisioned it, the arrival of the giant hunters had almost ruined everything, but in the end she had been able to say what she wanted to say when she invited him for this picnic.


	3. The lovers

_Authors note:_

 _This chapter wraps things up a bit, so it's short and fast and hopefully a bit cute. And remember that final episode of the first season of the anime when Diane was human sized for a bit? I figured Howzer deserved to have that happen to him too ^_^ so that also happens in this chapter, but I'm not going into detail as to what they do exactly._

* * *

After the picnic they used the cart to bring the bodies of the giant hunters to the town and Howzer reported what had happened. After that he told Gilthunder what had happened in more detail, including what Diane had said to him. Gilthunder was genuinely happy for Howzer and expressed that too.

Since that day Howzer and Diane spend as much time together as they could. It happened often either of them was away on a mission, but there were plenty of moments for them to meet up. Her size wasn't an issue for Howzer, he loved her regardless of that. In terms of a physical relationship certain things were impossible, but as often as he could he placed his hand affectionately on her face or her thigh, depending on how she sat or lay, and she often picked him up for a cuddle. It was all he needed. He was close to her and could spend time with her. What more did he need?

One day when he was in his house he had just removed his armour when someone knocked on the door. He went over to open it and blinked in surprise when he saw Diane in human-size. It was unmistakably her, he had seen her in this size before. The dress she wore, a beautiful yellow dress, that one was new.

"D-Diane?" he stuttered. "What..."

"I drank a potion from Merlin," she said. "We were on a mission and I needed to be smaller. It will wear off in about two hours." She took her dress and turned around. "Do you like it?"

"Of course," Howzer muttered.

"I figured that, maybe, we could take this opportunity for, you know."

Howzer smiled at her and put his hand on the side of her face. For the first time the palm of his hand actually fit nicely over her cheek, rather than being able to touch just a part of it with his full hand. "Just so you know, I was perfectly happy with how our relationship was. I didn't mind you were so much taller than me." He noticed how she wanted to say something, but with a gentle finger on her lips he stopped her. "I would love to have you with me for the next two hours if you want to, I just wanted you to know I was never unhappy with our relationship, despite our difference in height." The moist eyes and happy smile said more than enough, it was obvious Diane was happy with what she heard. Howzer wrapped his arms around her and kissed her passionately. And the next hour and a half they spend like lovers do.

After Diane returned to her normal size again, they continued their relationship in the way the had before. They spend time together and were just happy with being close to each other. The only difference was that they knew what they had shared when she was human-sized and it had made their bond even stronger. They loved each other and wanted to stay together for as long as destiny would allow them. They both knew Diane would outlive Howzer if none of them would die before their time during a battle, but that was fine. They had each other now, they were happy and that is all what matters.


End file.
